Weld County man to spend 20 years in prison after 379 marijuana plants are found on his property

Posted on 01/05/2018

GREELEY, Colo. (Weld County D.A.) – A Weld County man will spend the next 20 years prison after he plead guilty Thursday to operating an illegal marijuana grow at his Keenesburg property.

After several months of investigating, the Weld County Drug Task Force shut down the operation at Gary Goodwin Jr’s property, located at 26490 Weld County Road 16 in December of 2016. During the raid, authorities confiscated 70 pounds of the drug and 12 pounds of marijuana edibles.

According to an affidavit, authorities also found dried and pre-packaged marijuana in a locked safe, books on how to grow marijuana, as well as $1,200 in cash. They also found what they believed to be a “finishing room,” which included a drying rack, sealing bags and a money counting machine.

Furthermore, 17 firearms and a large amount of ammunition was also found during the raid.

“Unfortunately, we see drug related cases every day in our community,” Weld County District Attorney Michael Rourke said. “But it’s different when you have an operation of this magnitude that’s affecting people not only in Weld County, but in other communities, too. We won’t tolerate it and hopefully other people will learn from this man’s poor decisions.”

Goodwin Jr. plead guilty to Possession with Intent to Manufacture or Distribute Marijuana Over 50 Pounds and the court sentenced him to 20 years in the Department of Corrections.